Chapter 35: The "Couple" in the Solo Lane

Lin Shu mumbled, "What do you mean I drank the wrong thing? I didn't. I can still drink... Hmm? Wait, that's my song!"

She picked up the microphone and jogged to the screen, singing with deep emotion. She missed the pitch on the first line and had to turn on the original vocal track to get back on track.

"...I dodge the guns of countless hunters, driving away the sorrow that crawls from the grave."
"For you, I become a werewolf."
"For you..."

She held one hand to her ear and extended the microphone toward Zhou Ya, Zhang Bing, and the others with the flair of a celebrity at a concert.

The rest of the group, not one of them lacking in "non-mainstream" spirit, immediately joined in: "Infected with madness~"

Lin Shu led the group in a chorus of "Seeking Buddha." What a terrifying scene.

As it reached the climax, the girl put one foot on the table, pounding her chest and stamping her feet:

"Can we ever meet again?! I have begged before the Buddha for thousands of years in agony! Before I cross this Naihe Bridge again, let me kiss your face one more time~"

Xie Buchun clutched his forehead. He couldn't bear to watch.

Zhang Bing, A-Hui, and the others clapped and cheered wildly. Zhou Ya shouted a few cheers, but she felt that Lin Shu was abnormally hyper.

When Lin Shu grabbed Xie Buchun by the collar and sang, "Oh, you ugly monster~ oh~ oh~ oh~ can you not turn on the lights~," Zhou Ya finally confirmed it: she was drunk.

Lin Shu had been drunk once before. Back then, she had grabbed their friend Xiao Xue and kissed her repeatedly, which caused Xiao Xue to completely freeze up. Xiao Xue thought Lin Shu was a lesbian trying to force herself on her and stopped hanging out with them afterward.

...No way. Not again!

Zhou Ya lunged forward to pull Lin Shu away, but she was a step too late.

Lin Shu bit down on Xie Buchun. Xie Buchun, caught off guard the first time, didn't dodge and took a solid bite to the face. When she went for a second, he reached out to block, but seemingly afraid of touching Lin Shu’s chest, he pulled back in a hurry.

Good grief, the little hooligan seized the opening, hooked her arms around Xie Buchun’s neck like a bullying street thug, and took another bite at his head.

Xie Buchun stopped struggling. He had clearly been bitten into submission.

The boy pressed his hands on Lin Shu’s shoulders to push her aside, his ears red as blood, his fingers flushed too—truly a pitiable sight. Zhou Ya stood there, dumbfounded. She hugged Lin Shu from behind and hurriedly apologized to Xie Buchun, but seeing the saliva-covered teeth marks on his face, she couldn't help but burst into laughter.

As Zhou Ya giggled, Zhang Bing and the others saw it too. The whole group went hysterical. They pulled out their phones and started snapping pictures of Xie Buchun’s face. He snatched two phones and threw them away, but couldn't stop his "loyal" friends from picking them back up to keep shooting.

"Lin Shu, wake up!" Xie Buchun said, annoyed.

Lin Shu hugged Zhou Ya and wailed. Zhou Ya kept patting her back, comforting her, though she had no idea what she was comforting her about. It was all just inexplicably chaotic.

Hearing Xie Buchun yell, Lin Shu whipped her head around. Xie Buchun instinctively raised his hand, thinking she was going to bite again, but Lin Shu ditched Zhou Ya and lunged forward to wrap her arms tightly around him.

"Don't die, Xie Buchun, you must not die, wuwuwu... I beg you, you have to live a long, safe life until you’re an old man, okay?"

The group roared with laughter, pointing and jeering. Then, the noise faded into silence. Although Lin Shu was drunk, her words were heartfelt. Anything becomes unfunny once genuine emotion is involved.

Except for Zhou Ya, everyone knew Xie Buchun had pulled off a massive stunt, and he was treating them today with his prize money. While they felt it was dangerous, they mostly thought he was a legend. Now, hearing Lin Shu cry like this, they couldn't help but feel a sudden, melancholy chill.

What is this? They rode bikes, but none of them flew as high as he did. And even if they did fly that high, there wasn't necessarily a girl waiting to break her heart over them.

...

Xie Buchun pulled Lin Shu’s hands away. He wanted to touch her face but, noticing the surrounding gazes, silently pulled back. He wasn't usually known for having a good temper, so the fact that his voice could be this gentle was truly eye-opening.

"Lin Shu, stop crying." Xie Buchun said helplessly.

Lin Shu tugged at his face. "You aren't allowed to die, do you hear me?!"

"I hear you." Xie Buchun replied obediently, his face stretched out of shape.

The group was stunned, over and over again. Xie Buchun thought their singing was terrifying, but he didn't realize they thought he and Lin Shu were... too much to look at.

(≖_≖ )(≖_≖ )(≖_≖ )

"That's more like it." Lin Shu patted his face, satisfied, and sat back down, folding her arms with the serene demeanor of an old lady.

Zhou Ya looked at her friend, then at Xie Buchun. She didn't see the same sense of resistance she had seen when Lin Shu was with Ji Xingshen. She still didn't approve of Lin Shu associating so closely with these kinds of guys... but Xie Buchun really didn't give off that unsettling, dangerous vibe that Ji Xingshen did.

After that, as long as it wasn't a song for Lin Shu, she didn't go crazy. She watched the music videos obediently, surprisingly well-behaved.

When it was time for Zhou Ya to go home, she wanted to take Lin Shu with her.

Xie Buchun said, "You go ahead, I'll get her home safely."

Zhou Ya was still uneasy. She knew the "hooligan" wasn't a bad guy, but as for being a "good guy," that term didn't exactly fit him either.

Xie Buchun had no choice but to carry Lin Shu on his back and follow behind Zhou Ya. Zhou Ya hailed two taxis, added the driver of the car carrying Lin Shu and Xie Buchun on social media, and instructed the driver to notify her upon arrival. She then gave Xie Buchun a sharp, piercing stare. If it weren't for her curfew, she never would have let the "hooligan" take Lin Shu home. What a hawk-like woman.

Xie Buchun chuckled and sat in the backseat, letting Lin Shu use him as a pillow. The car didn't go very fast—the driver was worried Lin Shu might vomit—but to Xie Buchun, it felt fast. In the blink of an eye, they were at Xihe Road.

He touched the teeth marks on his face; they were fading. They would likely be gone by tomorrow. A faint sense of loss washed over him. It wasn't that no one cared about him; it was that no one else seemed to care about him the way Lin Shu did. She seemed to be able to see right through his secret, self-destructive impulses.

What a terrifyingly sharp person. Why did she worry about him? She wasn't exactly having a relaxing time herself day to day.

His scalp, where she had bitten him, ached faintly. His face felt like it was burning. Xie Buchun took off his jacket and covered Lin Shu with it. Beneath the fabric, the girl’s slender arms were wrapped tightly around his own. He could have pulled away without a trace, but he didn't.

A hazy smoke began to rise in his heart, wanting to envelop her. Xie Buchun lowered his gaze, staring at the girl’s sleeping face. Long eyelashes like fans, skin smooth as an egg white with barely visible pores, two adorable flushes on her cheeks. Her nose was delicate but had a sharp bridge—she must have a stubborn temper. She certainly was stubborn. Her lips, even without makeup, were a rosy red, and her chin looked childish.

She was so beautiful. When they first met, she was a bit thin, but now her arms had strength, her voice was clear and loud, and she was even more beautiful.

It was strange. He had known she was pretty before—after all, the boys always talked about Lin Shu in private—but... Xie Buchun now felt she was impossibly beautiful, better than anyone else.

He couldn't help but want to get closer to her. His heart was burning. The world was both quiet and noisy.

...

After getting out of the car, the cool air helped Lin Shu sober up. She hurriedly called Zhou Ya to report that she was safe. Zhou Ya told her to be more careful and not to drink the wrong thing again. Lin Shu agreed readily, but once she hung up, she said slyly that the cocktail was delicious and asked Xie Buchun to give her the recipe.

"My ancestor..." Xie Buchun sighed, surrendering to her whims.

Lin Shu dangled her feet, only then realizing she should get off Xie Buchun’s back.

Xie Buchun said, "I'll carry you to your door, don't trip."

"Aren't you cold... why did you put your jacket on me?" Lin Shu flicked her long sleeves, smelling the jasmine laundry detergent scent on Xie Buchun. She instinctively leaned in and took two deep breaths.

He saw her and let out a laugh.

"Do you like jasmine?"

"...Not really."

She didn't know why, but she just wanted to smell it. Maybe she liked something else entirely.

Xie Buchun carried her into the residential complex, mentioning that the Xihe Road intersection they had arranged to meet at earlier was still quite a distance away.

Lin Shu said, "Yeah, I did it on purpose. I was afraid that if you knew I was a rich girl, you'd insist on me keeping you as a kept man."

Xie Buchun said, "You really think of me as a mold, huh? Even if I hit rock bottom, I wouldn't sell myself to you."

Lin Shu laughed, "The one who throws themselves at me I don't want, but I'd love to see what kind of goods are so determined to resist." She pinched his chin with a mock-serious tone.

Xie Buchun turned his head to play along. Their eyes met.

She lowered her head again. His eyes seemed different somehow; looking at them made her heart race so fast.

Good heavens.

Her ovulation period was already over; she should be in a hormonal calm phase now. Why was she still so heart-stricken? It was all Xie Buchun’s fault for looking like that. If he looked like a toad, she wouldn't have felt a single spark even if someone had drugged her.

Hmph.

Xie Buchun asked her what she was huffing about.

Lin Shu said, "I'm not telling you."

Xie Buchun shifted her higher on his back to get a better grip.

Lin Shu said, "I didn't hide my address because of you; I hide it from everyone. I've had this weird idea since I was little—I always think my family is going to go bankrupt. Because I fear the fall, I just choose to keep a low profile."

Xie Buchun said, "You aren't keeping that low of a profile. Those VIP tickets to the amusement park aren't cheap."

Lin Shu said, "Hey, even the best plans have a slip-up."

"Only one?"

That despicable hooligan was catching her in a lie.

Lin Shu let out an "oh."

When they reached her door, Lin Shu patted her cheeks and pulled her hair up, preparing to put on a vibrant, energetic look to avoid making Aunt Zhu suspicious. She kept patting and smoothing things out.

Xie Buchun stopped in his tracks.

Lin Shu leaned her chin on his shoulder, and as her gaze settled, her eyes slowly widened.

Why was Ji Xingshen at her door?

Wasn't he supposed to be in the hospital? Had she drunk fake alcohol? Why did it have the side effects of poisonous mushrooms?

Damn it.

Ji Xingshen moved. He looked like a real person...

The boy was draped in a thin coat, wearing striped hospital pajamas underneath. His cheeks were sunken, there were bruises under his eyes, and he was pressing his right hand against the back of his left hand.

Upon seeing them, Ji Xingshen stumbled to his feet. As his hand loosened, blood began to flow from the IV site on the back of his hand. The white bandage soaked through into a shocking, vivid red.

"Lin Shu..." Ji Xingshen looked at her, perched on Xie Buchun’s back, in disbelief. He rasped, "What are you doing?"